LogInFormer Xbox Podcast host Major Nelson is already on the case.
I think we can all agree that while switching from perpetual licenses to a subscription model is undeniably beneficial for software developers, it can become a major headache for indie developers, who often lack the resources to create custom software and, at the same time, can't truly own the tools they rely on. A puzzling story that went viral on Reddit in the last 24 hours highlights this issue perfectly, showing how an entire team can lose access to their trusted engine overnight for what seems like no reason whatsoever.
RATH
Over on r/Unity3D, a developer from the indie team RATH, known as atomicace, captured the attention of thousands by sharing that the Unity accounts of all the team's developers were suspended shortly after the release of Playing God, a pixel art 2D platformer that launched last week.
As atomicace explained, the game in question hadn't gone viral and had only sold 10 copies over the weekend, earning the team around $50. While this modest performance wasn't unexpected for the team – composed of hobbyist developers with day jobs who don't see game development as their primary source of income – what was surprising was that every single member of RATH, including those not working on Playing God and focused on the studio's unreleased projects, had their Unity accounts shut down with no official explanation for the suspension provided.
Here's the message atomicace received:
Upon getting the notification, atomicace quickly contacted customer support, only to be told that the issue could only be resolved by the compliance team, whose response time was reportedly two months, making the developer question what they should do all this time.
When asked to provide more details about the team and their use of Unity, atomicace explained that every member was working with Unity Personal, a version of the engine that, under the company's recently updated pricing policy, should remain free for projects earning less than $200,000 in revenue or funding.
They also clarified that the game included the "Made With Unity" splash screen, ran on Unity 2021.3.25f1, and didn't rely on any other Unity services or third-party assets, significantly narrowing the list of potential reasons for the suspension. Furthermore, the developer pointed out that Unity's ability to track every member of a small and informal studio like RATH made them believe that any new accounts created by team members would likely be suspended automatically.
RATH
Luckily for RATH, the story quickly gained the traction necessary to reach Unity itself, with none other than Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, a former Xbox Podcast host who became a part of Unity's Community department earlier this year, joining the thread and promising to investigate whether the suspension of the team members' accounts was due to an honest mistake, a technical glitch, foul play, or actual wrongdoing on the part of the indie developer.
"For privacy and security reasons, I won't be able to provide details on this (or any) specific case – but just know my team and I are looking at the process and find out how we can be better at warning around any violations (and what the violation is) before action is taken," commented Major Nelson. "I also want to mention that the team usually replies within a few days (2-4) so not sure why 2-months was communicated. I can look into that as well. Thanks for bringing this to our attention."
At the time of writing, the suspension is still being investigated, and the reasons behind it – along with the future of RATH's Unity accounts – remain unknown. I strongly encourage you to check out the original thread on Reddit to stay updated on any future developments. You can also support the indie team by purchasing Playing God on Steam.
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